Dark
by NewWarl0ck
Summary: Aria's left broken after she finds out that Ezra's A. Jake wants to help her, but she won't let him in. Spencer's going down a dark path herself, and Toby's trying to help her. Everything is changing for the liars, whether they're ready for it or not.
1. Chapter 1

_I decided to make this a full story_

* * *

_Chapter 1, the ReveAl_

Hanna knew.

She looked up at him. His blue eyes were duller than usual. He didn't look like the sweet and harmless English teacher he always was before. That's because he wasn't. She didn't know how it happened, but she knew who he really was. He looked back down at his paper. As the bell rang, he looked at Hanna again.

"Miss Marin, may I have a moment of your time?"

Aria, Spencer, and Emily glanced at Hanna quickly before walking out of the classroom along with the rest of the students. Hanna waited behind. She walked up to Mr. Fitz. Her heart was pounding. She couldn't look at him the same anymore. He was only a dangerous man in her mind.

"I have noticed that you're acting a bit unusual," he began. "I'm a little worried for you. Is everything alright, Miss Marin?"

The blonde nodded her head quickly.

"Mr. Fitz, I'm fine," Hanna lied. "Thank you for your concern, though. May I go?"

He raised his eyebrows, not believing her at all. He nodded his head, and she walked out the door. She had to find some way to tell Aria. She couldn't let her best friend be with that psychopath anymore!

Hanna had found A's diary in the lair, the night they all went to Ravenswood. Once Caleb had left to take care of Miranda in Ravenswood, Hanna was heartbroken. She loved Caleb. So, with the heartbreak, she had a lot of time on her hands, and she cracked the diary open without anyone's help. She wasn't the ditzy blonde everyone thought she was.

"What did Ezra want to talk to you about?" Aria asked.

She was still swooning after her un-grand reunion with Ezra at the Brew, the night before they went to Ravenswood. She thought that she had her moral compass back. In reality, her so-called moral compass was the one leading her in the wrong direction. But she didn't know that.

"Um, some essay that I didn't turn in because of my mom's trial," Hanna lied. "He's giving me until Friday to make it up."

"Aw, he's so sweet!" Aria exclaimed. "That's my guy. Do you guys wanna go hang at Spencer's after school? I really need some girl time with you."

"Sure," Spencer said, nodding her head. "Are you two in?"

Hanna and Emily nodded their heads.

"Wait, I have to go ask Mr. Fitz another question about my essay. I'll have to catch up with you guys later," Hanna said, and jogged to her locker.

She remembered how Spencer lured Toby. Even though Toby was revealed as good, Spencer, at the time she thought he was A, lured him to her house by showing off the A key. Hanna had something that Ezra probably wanted back, for sure. His own diary that had his dirty secrets.

She had stashed the diary in her locker the day before, so she grabbed it and went back to Mr. Fitz's classroom. He looked up at her.

"Hanna?" he said. "You've changed your mind, and you want to talk?"

The blonde nervously nodded.

"Well, yeah. I've been freaking out about my college essay. I feel like it just isn't good enough," Hanna said, stepping towards his desk. "I wrote my draft in this notebook, and I was hoping that you could take a look at it and give me your commentary, since you're my English teacher."

"Why, I'd be glad to. I'm happy to help you," he said. "So, where's that notebook of yours?"

She slid the diary on his desk. She noticed his eyes getting wide when he saw it. He pretended to open it as if it were really her notebook.

"This doesn't seem like your notebook. Hanna, what is this?" Ezra asked.

"Um, it's just something I got from Spencer's house. I'm going to Emily's house tonight, so I'll just drop it off at _Spencer's_ on my way there," Hanna said, trying to emphasize Spencer's name.

"Spencer's? I see," Ezra nodded, looking away. "So, since this isn't your essay notebook, where's the real thing?"

"Crap, I don't think I brought it," she sighed. "Maybe another time, Mr. Fitz?"

"Of course," he said.

* * *

Hanna had put the diary by the front of Spencer's house, where it was visible from the window. She made the girls go to Spencer's room, because she didn't want Ezra to know that they were in the house. He thought they were at Emily's.

The blonde heard a creaking from downstairs. She knew it was him. He was here, and he was going to break in. Hanna was definitely nervous. It wasn't just a hunch, she knew for a fact that he was A, in some way, shape, or form. The only person she told was Toby. Yes, it was weird, but she called him for back up. He wanted to tell Spencer, so she agreed.

"Is it time?" Spencer quietly asked.

She nodded her head.

"I think I hear something coming from downstairs," Hanna worriedly said. "We should go check. I still feel like A is here."

The four girls slowly walked downstairs.

"Guys," Emily whispered, nearly sobbing. "I see a black hoodie."

"Oh my god," Aria whispered.

"We need to end this," Spencer confidently said.

The girls walked over to the kitchen, where the hoodie was picking up the diary. He realized that there were people behind him. When he turned around, he was freaking out. He knew they were there. They would all find out. He was busted, caught, donzo!

"Alright, you monster!" Aria yelled. "You're busted."

She stepped up and grabbed the guy's arm.

"Let's find out who you really are," Aria said.

The tiny girl flipped the man around.

"Ezra," she whispered, tears in her eyes. "No, this isn't true."

Spencer, Emily, and Hanna stared at the scene. Spencer and Hanna were surprised, even though they knew he was A before. They just couldn't believe that the sweet and kind English teacher who loved Aria would do this. Did he even love Aria? Emily was holding on to her friends.

Tears were falling out of Aria's eyes.

"How could you?" she demanded, since he wasn't saying anything.

"Aria," he quietly said her name.

"Ezra, how could you!?" she repeated herself, angrier the next time.

He didn't know what to do. He wasn't planning on getting caught. He should have known that they read the diary and knew. He should have known that Hanna was setting him up. He shouldn't have believed that they were all in Emily's house.

"It's not like this," he sighed. "You weren't supposed to know."

"Do you love me!?" she cried.

It was an odd question to ask, but she had to know.

"Aria," he urged.

She stared at his ice blue eyes. They seemed so cold and brutal now. They weren't the warm welcoming eyes that she used to gaze into. He wasn't the Ezra that she fell in love with. He was some other monster, and she didn't know who he was anymore!

He didn't know what to say. He shoved Aria off of him, and grabbed a kitchen knife.

"Ezra, please!" Aria pleaded. "Don't do this."

It hurt him, but he pressed the knife against Aria's neck.

"I do love you, Aria," he said.

"Stop!" Spencer screamed.

"Shut up!" he yelled.

Spencer, Hanna, and Emily were looking around for a weapon they could grab. They couldn't get a kitchen knife, since Ezra was right by them. They needed to stop him. They couldn't let him kill Aria.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart, but you deserved it," Ezra whispered harshly. "I love you, I really do. But, it wasn't supposed to be that way. I wasn't supposed to fall in love. I was in love with Alison, not you. You were supposed to lead me to her, but instead, you led me to your heart."

"Ezra, please stop this! We can fix this, we can turn this around!" Aria pleaded.

"No," he said sternly. "I'm sick. I'm screwed up. Nothing can fix who I've become. You have to die, and so do your little bitches."

"Stop!" Hanna screamed, and tried to kick Ezra.

It failed. He shoved her right off.

"I'll deal with you later, blondie. You'll die the worst, since you're the one who set me up," Ezra said, furrowing his eyebrows in anger.

"What?" Aria choked out.

"I knew he was A, so I set this up," Hanna sobbed.

"You knew! Why didn't you tell me!?" Aria cried.

"You'll never get to know why, because you're going to die," Ezra bitterly said. "Aria, my sweet love. I've never loved a girl the way I love you."

The knife was about to cut her neck. He already scratched her a little bit with the knife. She never thought her sweet Ezra would be doing this to her, but he was. She never imagined her beautiful and perfect Ezra Fitz, who kissed her and said he loved her, to be the one to slit her throat.

"Get off of her!"

Toby Cavanaugh came running in, and jumped on Ezra's back. He tackled the young teacher to the ground. Ezra stupidly dropped the knife.

"Baby!" Spencer cried. "Please Toby, don't!"

He tackled Ezra away. Aria quickly got up and joined her panicking friends.

"I don't want him to get hurt!" Spencer cried, and ran towards them.

"Spencer, stop!" Emily cried. "You're going to get hurt!"

"Emily, I don't care!" Spencer yelled. "I'm not going to let the love of my life die!"

Ezra shoved Toby off of himself. The dark haired make got up and ran out of the building.

"Coward," Toby muttered as he brushed himself off.

Spencer gave him a hand up, and pulled him in for a hug. She kissed his lips passionately, and looped her arms around his neck. They stayed together, and they felt safe together.

"Thank you for saving me, Toby," Aria whispered.

"I'm so sorry, Aria," Toby said, sighing.

The tiny girl shivered at the sight of Ezra in the infamous black hoodie, and turned away.

"Hanna, how did you know?" Aria asked.

"The diary," Hanna responded. "I called Toby for back up... um, and I called someone else."

"Who?" Emily asked.

Hanna opened the door. Jake stood in the doorway.

"I got your message," Jake said. "What's wrong?"

"I think Aria needs you," Hanna said.

"Aria, what's wrong?" Jake asked.

She started crying, and he pulled her into a hug. He didn't ask why again. He decided that he would let her talk when she wanted to talk. The night was a disastrous one.

"I don't want to be alone tonight," Emily whispered.

"I think it would be best if we all stayed together," Spencer said, holding on to her boyfriend.

"Do you want me to stay?" Jake asked.

"Please, yes," Aria sobbed. "I need you, Jake. I need all of you."

"Toby, will you stay?" Spencer asked.

"Of course," Toby said, nodding. "I love you so much."

He kissed the top of Spencer's head before pulling her into a hug.


	2. Chapter 2

_Chapter 2, Aftermath_

* * *

It was the morning after. Jake had to get to work, and so did Toby. The guys didn't want to leave. Toby even tried to take off work to be with them, but Spencer didn't want him to do that. She let him go with a kiss to the lips. She needed some time to console Aria, anyways.

"Aria," Spencer began, "I know it looks bad."

"It _is_ bad."

"You don't know that," Spencer said, sighing. "When I saw Toby in that black hoodie, I cracked. I let myself fall apart, and I didn't even know the whole truth. Emily told me that sometimes things look bad when they're not, but I didn't listen. I just wrecked myself. When I found out the truth, it was amazing."

She crossed her arms.

"This isn't some double agent crap," Aria declared, staring at the floor angrily. "Toby didn't tell you why. Ezra," she tried not to cry when she said his name, "he explained things. He tried to kill me! It is bad, Spencer. I can't believe that I fell for it, I fell for his game!"

The brunette sighed, "Ar, it's not your fault."

"I blame myself for falling in love with that poetic voice, and those blue eyes," she said, leaning against the bed. "I fell for it, so it is my fault."

"You didn't know he was doing this," Spencer reminded.

"Well, I should have been more cautious of who I love!" Aria yelled, and slammed her head against the bed. "Why the hell did he do this to me? He can't just steal my heart and expect me to not cry when this happens! He told me he fucking loved me! He made me so happy, and now he's just walking away after breaking my heart!"

The flow of tears wouldn't be stopping. Emily and Hanna rushed into the room when they heard Aria yelling and crying.

"Aria, I know last night was awful," Emily said, sighing. "We were all in for a huge shock. It was pretty horrible, what he did. I know what it feels like to lose someone I love. It's not a good feeling."

"Maya died a saint," Aria angrily said. "Ezra... I lost him, knowing that he never loved me!"

"He said he loved you," Emily reminded.

"And I'm supposed to believe anything he says now?" Aria rolled her eyes and looked away.

* * *

Spencer stared at the coffee in front of her. Nothing felt the same, knowing that Ezra Fitz was A. Even though he wasn't of any kind of real relationship besides a teacher to Spencer, she had this wrenching feeling in her stomach when she thought about such a dark betrayal. It hurt her.

Toby sat across from her, and looked up.

"Spence, you usually jump at the chance to drink coffee," Toby said, sighing.

"I know. It's just so awful, what he did to Aria," Spencer said, unable to focus on her boyfriend. "It hurts me. I know how much she's hurting. I know what betrayal feels like, and it doesn't feel good. You feel like nothing's alright anymore, and you feel worthless. You feel like you've been lied to, because you have been."

Toby guiltily stared at the floor.

"I'm sorry," he apologized.

"No, I wasn't trying to pinpoint you," Spencer said, sighing.

"Maybe you should be with Aria right now," he said. "She needs you more than I do."

"I've tried to visit her like a hundred times, but she won't let me in," Spencer frowned. "Ms. Montgomery just keeps saying that Aria doesn't want to talk right now. I feel bad for Ms. Montgomery. She returned from her trip with her new boyfriend, and when she comes home, she has to see her daughter in tears. Aria still doesn't know..."

"Know what?" Toby asked.

"Her mom's getting married to the boyfriend, Zack," Spencer responded.

"Zack? I rent my loft from him," Toby said, smiling a little. "I'm happy for her."

"She wants to tell Aria, but not while she's in this state," Spencer said.

"Maybe you should try to talk to her again," Toby suggested.

"Tobes, I want to be here with you," Spencer said, and stared at him lovingly. "Besides, if Aria doesn't want to talk, then I don't want to push her."

"Does everything feel weird to you?" Toby asked. "After last night... things... they just don't feel the same anymore. It's like this weird feeling I can't explain. Like you know that things can never go back to the way that they were before."

"Believe me, I know," Spencer responded, nodding. "That's what it feels like right now. I didn't think Ezra being A would take such a big toll on me. But he was Aria's boyfriend, so I should have known that things would be horrible from the moment Hanna told me he's A."

"Hanna's pretty clever. She pieced everything together," Toby said.

"She's been doing a lot of brainwork ever since Caleb left for Ravenswood," Spencer explained with a smile. "You know, Hanna's a lot smarter than people credit her for."

"I can see that now," Toby said, nodding. "You know who the smartest is, though? You. You're my incredibly beautiful, smart, and talented girlfriend."

"Girlfriend?" Spencer flirtatiously said as she looked at him. "I like that."

He chuckled.

"You know, things may have changed, but one thing will never change," Toby began. "The thing that will never change is how much I love you, Spencer. Well, maybe my love for you will get bigger, but I could never stop loving you."

She smiled at him sincerely.

"You better stop with the cliché talk before I tear up," she laughed.

He got up from his seat, and kissed her lips, and then pulled her in for a hug.


	3. Chapter 3

_Thank you for the sweet reviews! Such kindness:)_

_Chapter 3, Broken_

* * *

It hadn't been long since she found out about Ezra. Only one night, actually. So of course she wasn't over it. She didn't know if she would ever be over it! Spencer had tried visiting throughout the day, but Aria wasn't in the mood for a talk telling her to get her ass up. She didn't want to be coaxed or pitied. There was a knock on her door. Was Spencer back? She was ready to say she wanted to be alone again, but it wasn't Spencer— it was her mother.

"Aria, honey," Ella Montgomery said as she sat down on her daughter's bed. "How are you doing, sweetheart?"

She rolled her eyes and snapped, "Go away, mom! I'm _fine_."

Ella sighed. Maybe now wasn't a good time to tell her.

"Sweetie, I have to tell you something," Ella said. "When I was on my trip with Zack, um, well, he proposed to me. We're uh, getting married soon. He's my fiancé now."  


Aria felt angry, and she didn't know why. She had always supported her mother's relationship with Zack, but not at the moment. Her image of love was that it was a stinky thing that was full of lies. She _hated_ love. She didn't realize that she was going to take it out on her own mom.

"Married?" Aria angrily said. "You can't get married to him. He could be a betrayer, he could be some asshole that just wants to go behind your back and be a dickface! You don't even know what he's capable of, even if he tells you he loves you and makes you feel happy. Some guys can lie that well!"

Ella was stunned by her daughter's anger and profanity. She wasn't going to stand for it.

"I thought that you would support my marriage," Ella said, crossing her arms. "I'm disappointed in you, honey. You know Zack's a sweet guy. And I don't like it when you speak that way. As long as you're in this house, I don't want to hear words like that."

Aria rolled her eyes, "Life's full of disappointments, mom! You don't know if Zack's really the sweet guy you think he is. He could be backstabbing you at this very moment, but you won't know. And if you get married to him, and you find out what monster he really is, it'll just be a bite in the ass!"

Ella was so upset with her daughter.

"You're being so horrible!" Ella shouted. She didn't like shouting, but she had to. "What has gotten into you, young woman?"

"I found out what a pain life really is!" Aria yelled.

"Aria, what happened?" Ella asked, trying to calm herself. "Why are you in bed, shutting your friends out? Why are you acting this way?"

"I literally _just_ told you why," she snapped, and turned away.

Ella was flabbergasted. She got up from the bed and walked out the door. She was expecting at least a little support from Aria. She thought that Aria liked Zack! It wasn't the daughter she knew and loved. _Her_ Aria would never act that way, angry or not. Something was obviously wrong.

* * *

Hanna hated long distance. It made everything so much harder. She wanted to kiss and hug her boyfriend, not have to talk on the phone and dream of touching him. She knew sending him to Ravenswood to take care of Miranda was the right thing to do, but she didn't like it. She did what was best for him, though.

"I love you, Caleb," Hanna said over the phone. "Please, don't forget to call me again tomorrow. I miss you so much, baby."

"You too, Han," Caleb said.

"Is Miranda doing alright?" Hanna asked sincerely.

"She's still distraught, but she's doing better," Caleb responded.

"She's really lucky to have you by her side," Hanna said.

"You were really selfless to tell me to go," Caleb said, smiling to himself.

"Miranda needs you," Hanna sighed.

"Well, I need _you_, Hanna," Caleb said, sighing as well. "I don't know how much longer I can go without you. Miranda's the sweetest thing, but I want to see my girl. It hurts me to not see you. Promise me you'll visit sometime? I have to see you again. It's already been too long."

"Of course, I'll visit you whenever I can!" Hanna exclaimed. "Do you really have to go now, Caleb? Like _right_ now?"

"Yeah I have to, babe," Caleb said, sighing.

There was a knock at the door.

"I have to now, anyways," Hanna said. "Spencer's here, she called."

"Wait, Hanna!" Caleb stopped her. "You told me that you guys found out who another A was. Were you right? Who is it? I need to know that you're safe. I may be in Ravenswood, but I'm not going to stop being protective just because we're miles apart. I know you miss my protectiveness, anyways."

"I miss everything about you!" Hanna exclaimed. "Caleb, it's a really long story about the whole A thing, and Spencer's here now, so I'll have to tell you another time, I'm really sorry, babe. I love you so much. Stay safe."

"You stay safe, too, sweetheart!" Caleb called after her. "I love you more. Bye babe."

She smiled to herself and hung up the phone. She went to the door and opened it. As expected, Spencer was standing there with her usual face of stress. The blonde let the brunette inside of her house, and the two sat down on the couch after Hanna closed the door behind her.

"What happened that's so urgent?" Hanna asked.

"Ms. Montgomery called me," Spencer responded, sighing. "Aria's on some kind of downward spiral. She was cursing, yelling, and she even got angry when Ms. Montgomery told her about Zack proposing. She's totally a love-hating masochist now."

"I was expecting her to go to planet free fall," Hanna said. "I just can't believe she doesn't support her mother's marriage. My mom was so happy for her! And anyways, you know what betrayal feels like. She's having a downward spiral, just like you were when you found out about Toby."

"Hanna, that's a dark place for me," Spencer said, swallowing hard and sighing. "I don't like thinking about it. It hurts me."

"I get it," Hanna said, nodding. "Anyways, I'm going to tell Caleb about Ezra tomorrow. I told him that we found out about A."

"I hope he doesn't get too overprotective and pissed... and then storm his way back to Rosewood to get revenge on Mr. Fitz... err, Ezra," Spencer said. "How's he doing in Ravenswood, anyways? Is he holding up alright?"

"Yeah, he's really helping Miranda," Hanna responded. "I'm glad she has the support of an amazing guy like Caleb. I bet he's really helping her well."

"Well, Caleb's departure helped you catch Ezra," Spencer smiled. "Kudos to you, Han."

"It's usually you who figures it all out," Hanna said. "It feels good to be the one this time, even though it sucks to know that the person you revealed is your best friend's boyfriend. Well, _was_ your best friend's boyfriend."

* * *

Emily could barely stay focused. She was actually quite close with Ezra. Maybe not as close as Aria, but she didn't consider Ezra her teacher, she considered him a _friend_. A harmless, kind friend. But not anymore. All she saw was him in the black hoodie, standing in Spencer's kitchen. It was always the people she liked that turned out to be A. Even Mona.

"You alright, honey?" Pam asked, walking up to her daughter.

"I'm fine, mom," Emily responded. "Just stressed, is all."

"Alright then. I'm going to head off to work," Pam said. "I know it's Saturday afternoon, but they have some case that I have to work on, so it's weekend work for me! Unfortunate, but true. Call me if you need anything. Love you, Emmy."

"Love you too, mom," Emily said, smiling weakly. "Okay."

After Pam left, the flow of texts from Paige McCullers was incredible. Emily ignored them, though. She was too distracted with the Ezra thing. She loved Paige, but she didn't feel like talking about it. Paige was worried about her, and Emily wanted to talk about Ezra to her, but she just didn't feel good enough about it. She was still hurting herself!

* * *

Toby was in a deep train of thought. Where was Ezra? How was it possible? He wanted to help Aria—he wanted to help them all! It was killing him to know the truth. He didn't even know Ezra personally, but he died a little inside, knowing the story. Aria fell in love with a guy, and he acted as if he loved her back, he acted as if he wanted to be with her. After years of dating, she suddenly had to find out that he was pretending the whole time. Now he knew what hell he put Spencer through. He knew he should have been smarter, and he should have told her. He could have saved their relationship from all the drama, even if it ended up in a steamy motel reunion.

Interrupting his train of thought came a knock at the door of his loft. He got up to open it, and his girlfriend stood there, looking beautiful, as usual. He kissed her hello as a greeting, even though it was an unexpected visit.

"Hey Spence," he said. "I love when you come over, but why are you here?"

"I need you," she said, sighing. "I just need you. I can't take this drama. It hurts me to think about Aria hurting this way! I hate it so much. I wish it wasn't this way. Why her? Why my best friend?"

"Life can be cruel," Toby said, and shut the door behind him after Spencer came inside.

"I've noticed for a while," Spencer said, sitting down.

"I want to apologize—for what I did to you," Toby said, sighing. He looked into her brown eyes. "Just thinking about what happened to Aria makes me realize what happened to you. How _awful_ it must have been to think that I pretended to love you the whole time. After all the promises and I love yous, to find out that it was fake all along. That must have hurt so badly."

"It did, Toby, but it's the past," Spencer said. "I'm trying to put it behind me, and not think of it. I'm trying to move on from it, but how can I do that when we keep bringing it up? Everyone keeps bringing it up now, actually. I was just at Hanna's, and she mentioned it as well."

"Well, I'm the one who inflicted that pain, so I thought you needed to hear a real apology from me, rather than an explanation," Toby frowned at her. "I'm so sorry, Spence. I always mess things up. All I do is make your life harder!"

"That's not true," Spencer said, shaking her head. "You make me so damn happy. I love you, okay? Don't forget that."

He pressed his lips against hers for a sweet kiss, feeling like it was the right thing to do during that moment. He held on to her tightly as their lips touched for that long, but romantic, kiss. For the first time since the Ezra reveal, they felt safe, and they felt like things were still hopeful in life.

"Never leave me, _ever_," Spencer pleaded hopefully, gazing into his blue eyes.

"Sometimes I do stupid things, but I would never want to leave you," Toby said, smiling. "I would never want to intentionally hurt you."


End file.
